“What a dick, huh?” Roy let out a deep chuckle. “Cowardly little pussy. Running off to leave you alone withme.He’s useless. You should shoot him in the fucking face when he comes back.Ifhe comes back.”
Savannah bit back her urge to defend Austin. It was instinctive, so quick and sudden that it snatched her breath away. Her hands twitched with the urge to pick up the wrench and bash Roy’s face in with it.
Don’t talk smack about my mate, asshole.
Damn it!
She couldn’t deny it to herself anymore.
Austinwasher true mate.
How the hell had that happened?
Her mother had told her that, according to legend, the paths of True Mates always crossed at least once in their lives. Smart shifters didn’t try to fight it. Dumb shifters sometimes did what Austin’s mother had done – ignored their heart, ignored their instincts, and chased after something shinier. And they always ended up miserable.
Rattled, she pulled a water bottle from her jacket pocket.
She opened it and held it up to Roy’s lips, and he gulped it down greedily, sucking down the entire bottle.
Austin was still gone. She looked around uneasily. She could still scent him, but he’d vanished into the woods. Restroom break?
But he could at least have told her what he was doing.
She went and got a sandwich from her cooler and fed it to Roy. He scarfed it down ravenously, and licked his lips.
“What was that sauce? Not a bad last meal at all.” He said that so calmly. Almost cheerfully. As if his imminent execution was no big deal.
“My mother made that sandwich. It’s a secret recipe.” She scourged him with a fierce glower. “And speaking of my mother, I’ve made an executive decision. Threaten my mother again, and I’m going to cut your throat. I’m not going to enjoy doing it, I won’t feel good about myself afterwards, but I’ll get over it and be just fine. I’ll forfeit the bounty, because we’re supposed to deliver your crazy ass alive, but my mother is more important than money.”
Roy looked up at her thoughtfully. “I’m not going to threaten your mother again, but it’s not because you told me that you were going to kill me. That’s a given. I’ll die today or in a few days – either way, this coming full moon will be my last one. I’m not going to threaten your mother anymore because taking away a woman from this world who can cook like that would be an actual sin.”
Savannah stared at him, her brow wrinkling in puzzlement.
“What?” he asked, squinting at her suspiciously.
“You aren’t acting anywhere near as crazy as I thought you would be.”
Roy’s face went slack and his gaze drifted, seeming to fix on nothingness. “Well. It comes and goes. And if you know your business, you know that makes me even more dangerous than someone who’s crazy all the time. I’ll lure you in, I’ll make you think I’m sane, and I’ll snap your neck when you least expect it. Best get it over with now.”
She folded her arms across her chest, shifting uncomfortably. “Are you trying to get us to kill you? Are you afraid of what the Washborn Pack is going to do to you? Because if you think they’re going to torture you, I don’t have to take you to them. I could take you back to Harris, the broker, and I guarantee you that whatever he does to you, it will be humane.”
She felt queasy. She’d been attacked and had to defend herself over the years. She’d killed three men who were trying to kill her. She hadn’t felt badly about it in the least. She had no problem with self-defense. But something about sitting there having a conversation with a man she would have to hand over to his death…
“Is that what you think?” He threw back his head and laughed. “You think I’m afraid of pain? It doesn’t matter what you fucking do to me. It doesn’t matter where you take me. Take me to the Washborn Pack, kill me yourself, it makes no fucking difference to me.”
“Hey!” she heard Austin calling, and she turned to him with a wave of relief washing over her. It had been getting to the point where she thought she might have to go search for him. Which would mean using more tranqs on Roy, and their supply was diminishing so fast that it was genuinely frightening her.
Austin jogged towards her, and as he got closer, her relief was replaced with worry.
The expression on his face…like he’d just stared into the bowels of hell. He was pale, and his eyes were wild. His hair was pasted to his head with sweat. He was breathing hard. What had just happened?
“Sorry,” he gasped, coming up the opposite side of the truck from her. He planted one hand on the side of the truck and leaned on it as if needing support to stay on his feet.
“Nice job, leaving your girlfriend alone with me,” Roy sneered at him as he scrambled in. “Next time you do that, I’m going to break my chains and eat her face while she’s still alive.”
Austin jerked upright, and his face contorted with fury. He drew back his fist and smashed Roy’s face, breaking his nose. Blood spurted out, dripping down his face, and Roy’s lips drew back in a wordless snarl.
“Next time you threaten Savannah, I’m going to dig up your mate’s grave and pound her bones to powder, and then mix it in my coffee and drink it!” Austin barked at Roy. “And then I’ll puke it up!”
